The invention relates to a method of cutting a sheet of glass which does not require a rupture force. The inventive method comprises the following steps: application of a treatment to the glass sheet, thereby generating stresses with biaxial distribution such that factor K is between 0.05 and 0.4 MPa.m<1/2>, said factor K being defined by K = [ INTEGRAL z sigma z<2>.H( sigma z).dz]<1/2>, wherein z is a position in the thickness, sigma z is the intensity at position z of the essentially isotropic biaxial stress, H( sigma z) is equal to 1 if sigma z is greater than 0 and is equal to 0 if sigma z is less than or equal to 0, with the convention that an extension is marked positive and a compression is marked negative; and, subsequently, a sub-crack, deeper than 10 m, is traced along the desired cutting line, said sub-crack reaching the extended area of the glass. The invention can be used, for example, to cut: glass, without breaking same, along curves having a small radius of curvature; strips of glass having a width similar to the thickness thereof; or frame forms that can be used, for example, as a spacer in a flat field emission screen. |